Category: Benedictine Spirituality

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Held in the prayer of Christ

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PRAYER

Today’s Eastertide word is PRAYER. We know we are called to nurture and sustain a relationship with God through PRAYER. Our prayer might be a prayer of praise, or petition or lament.

It might be a combination of all three. It might be personal prayer that we enter into by ourselves or communal prayer that we share with others through the liturgy. Mostly we need a combination of both of these.

We put a lot of effort into our prayer. We put a lot of thought into the best and most effective way to pray. Today’s gospel presents an image that I don’t think we often think about. It shows us Jesus praying for us. It seems to me that this tells us something important about Jesus’ relationship with the Father and about his relationship to us.

We know from elsewhere in the gospel that time spent with his Father was important to Jesus. Today’s gospel prayer, focused on what he knows we will need when he has returned to the Father, tells us that he deeply cares for us and is concerned for our well-being.

He wants to ensure that we are drawn into his union of love with the Father. He prays that we may receive the gift of eternal life which he describes as knowing God and knowing Christ:

“Let him give eternal life to all those you have entrusted to him. And eternal life is this: to know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.”

His prayer is that we come to recognise God in the very depths of our hearts in ways that are life affirming and transforming.

How do you want to respond to the Christ who prays for you this Eastertide?

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Loved into wholeness

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COMPLETE

Today’s Eastertide word is COMPLETE. Aware of our brokenness we all long for the wholeness that comes from the completion of God’s work in us.

In his first letter St John shows us the source of the completion we seek. It’s found in the relationship of love at the heart of the gospel, and that both calls and sustains us wherever life leads us. He writes:

“My dear people, since God has loved us so much, we too should love one another. No one has ever seen God; but as long as we love one another God will live in us and God will be complete in us.”

He makes a very clear connection between God’s love for us and our love for one another. This love is life changing and challenging. It acknowledges our brokenness and offers us a path towards wholeness. It’s a love that doesn’t give up when it’s hard or painful.

As St Benedict reminds us this love calls us to consider first what is best for the other rather than for ourselves. It calls for a daily recommitment. Sometimes it’s easier in the big challenges than in the small interactions of daily life which can feel so mundane and irritating.

Such love is beyond our human capacity, and in many ways it is. It is only when we know and accept ourselves as truly and unconditionally loved by God that we can begin to offer that love to others. us.

As we move towards Pentecost it’s worth remembering that the completion that brings us to wholeness relies on us abiding in God’s love so that we can carry it with us to a world in need.

How are you being to called to allow God’s love to bring you to wholeness this Eastertide?

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The Glory of Christ

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GLORIFY

Today’s Eastertide word is GLORIFY. Beginning with Jesus’ prayer for his disciples the word “glorify” repeats again and again throughout this Sunday’s gospel:

“Jesus said: ‘Father, the hour has come: glorify your Son so that your son may glorify you; and, through the power over all humankind that you have given him, let him give eternal life to all those you have entrusted to him.’”

In an age that sees itself as egalitarian his words seem baffling or even downright uncomfortable. We’ve seen too many misinterpretations of glorification to be comfortable with it. But John’s Gospel is not speaking of the human glory that we’ve seen misused and abused in so many areas.

The glory of the gospel is discovering the reality of divine presence in the midst of ordinary life. We’ve seen that unfold in Jesus’ in miracles and life transforming encounters.

Now Jesus is preparing his disciples for his departure and the coming of the Spirit. His prayer for them is that the presence of God will continue to break through into their lives.

That presence won’t remove the challenges, difficulties and dangers they face. Instead the presence of God with them will transform them, giving them courage to move forward in hope and trust.

In our own challenging and uncertain times that presence still has the power to break through and transform our lives. It is unlikely (though not impossible) that we will see it in grand gestures and actions.

It’s more likely to be apparent in glimpses and glimmers in the midst of the most ordinary and mundane activities of life. If we are attentive and alert it will come to us in the most unlikely of circumstances.

Where is God calling you to be attentive to the presence of God’s glory in your life?

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Learning to Ask.

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ASK

The mood of Eastertide changes after Ascension. It becomes quieter and more reflective as the disciples come to terms with Jesus returning to the Father, and await the coming of the Holy Spirit.

It’s still a time of rejoicing in the resurrection. It’s also a time of waiting and hoping, and both of those carry a certain amount of uncertainty with them. As St Paul tells us, we only hope for what we don’t have.

As the disciples waiting this time Jesus encourages them to be bold in acknowledging their needs. He says to them:

“I tell you most solemnly, anything you ask for from the Father he will grant in my name. Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and so your joy will be complete.”

So today my Eastertide word is ASK. On one level that seems very straightforward, Jesus tells his disciples, and us, that if we ask it in his name, we will receive what we need. It becomes more challenging when we begin to think about our attitudes to asking.

We live in times that greatly value independence. We are supposed to be able to support ourselves entirely independently. There is an expectation we will be able to meet our needs ourselves without help or support from anyone else. This makes it very hard for us to be vulnerable, to admit that we have needs that we can’t meet ourselves.

Once again Jesus points us in a different direction. In this time between Ascension and Pentecost he invites and challenges us to become vulnerable and humble in admitting our neediness in God’s presence.

Where is the risen Christ inviting you to ask for what you need this Eastertide?

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Time for Reflection.

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REFLECTION

The Eastertide gospels are very dynamic and active as the disciples struggle to come to terms with all that has happened. The gospels are full of movement, running, traveling, fishing, hiding. With Ascension the mood changes, it’s a quieter, more reflective time.

Jesus, who has been with the disciples in a new and very concrete way since the resurrection, has returned to the Father. This means the disciples have to adjust to another leaving, another loss and another new reality. They have to take time to reflect on all they have experienced, and they have to wait for whatever the Spirit will bring.

In this time we revisit the farewell discourses, reminding ourselves of the things Jesus has promised us. Today’s gospel acknowledges the suffering of life, the sorrow and the pain we all face. But it doesn’t stop there, having acknowledged the pain Jesus reveals another level of reality. He says to them:

“I shall see you again, and your hearts will be full of joy, and that joy no one shall take from you.”

He reminds them that no amount of suffering can destroy the joy he offers or take it away. As I look around our world today, at the wars and conflicts, the poverty, inequality and exclusion that cause so much suffering it’s hard to find sources of joy.

Yet it’s in these challenging time that Jesus promises us his joy. This time allows us the opportunity to reflect, and to acknowledge our suffering, and to open our hearts to the joy he promises.

Where are you being called to take time to reflect this Eastertide?

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Ascension

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ASCENSION

Ascension is one of the feasts I find most difficult for a variety of reasons. It’s very easy to see it as otherworldly, focussed more on eternity than on the nitty-gritty of human life. It also has an element of letting go.

Once again, we see Jesus leaving the disciples to face an unknown and uncertain future. This compels us to recognise the reality of our own uncertain and unknown future.

In my struggles to ground the feast in the reality of daily life I looked at the Scripture readings. I found two things that helped me. The first was from Matthew’s Gospel. He tells us that when the disciples saw Jesus:

“They fell down before him, though some hesitated.”

So it seems like some of those first disciples were also ambivalent about what was going on. I find consolation in that, and in Jesus’ response to it. He doesn’t criticise them or turn them away. Instead he sends them out with their ambivalence and uncertainty to spread the Good News of salvation.

The second helpful thing was in last night’s vigil reading from St Paul’s letter to the Ephesians:

“Be humble, gentle and patient always. Show your love by being helpful to one another. Do your best to preserve the unity which the Spirit gives, by the peace that binds you together.”

His words call us to strive to live up to the standard God sets not in terms of a future heavenly kingdom, but in very practical ways that we can all practice.

If we can find ways of being kind and helpful to those around us we will be able to make the Good News of the kingdom a reality in our lives and the lives of those we encounter.

Where is Christ calling you to live up to his standards in your daily life?

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A Spirit of truth and discernment.

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DISCERNMENT

In the lead up to Ascension Jesus is preparing his disciples for change. Once again they face a departure that will require them to let go of everything they thought they understood. Jesus says to them:

“I still have many things to say to you but they would be too much for you now. But when the Spirit of truth comes you will be led to the complete truth…”

His words touch on something that we both desire and fear, the complete truth. We are surrounded by voices telling us they have the truth that we need.

In today’s “post-truth” world it can be especially challenging to DISCERN the truth. We know our need for truth in order to be able to live well and with integrity, yet we struggle to know where we should turn to find it.

Jesus answers that for us, telling us he will send the Spirit of truth who will lead us this truth that we can rely on and trust. But to discover it we need to be open to and prepared.

The truth that the Spirit brings us will not necessarily appear obviously and easily. It will require us to be attentive to all that is going on in our lives and our times.

We need to be prepared to do the hard work of listening and discerning its presence in the midst of the myriad of voices that make up our daily lives. To do that we have to be prepared to let go of everything we thought we understood in order to be open to the new possibilities the Spirit brings.

As we move towards Ascension where is Christ calling you to discern the truth the Spirit is offering you?

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Celebration and rejoicing

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CELEBRATION

Today’s Eastertide word is CELEBRATION. Eastertide is a long season. It’s easy to remember it’s a season of celebration at the start. Fresh from the joy and excitement of Easter vigil we know we have something to celebrate.

As time goes on it gets harder to remember that we are still in a season of celebration. As the concerns of our lives take over again it can be hard to find the space to reflect on the resurrection and the joy and hope it brings to our lives today.

It might be possible to keep some sense of the Celebration alive in good times. When our societies and countries feel stable and secure we might find the space to celebrate. But our times are challenging, fearful and uncertain.

The peace and stability that we’ve relied on for decades seems to be crumbling before our eyes. In such times CELEBRATION seems an impossible dream.

Today’s first reading, from the Acts of the Apostles celebrates the resurrection in the most challenging of circumstances. Paul and Silas, miraculously released from prison, convert their jailer and baptise his whole family. Luke tells us:

“He took them home and gave them a meal, and the whole family celebrated their conversion to belief in God.”

They were at risk of persecution and even death, yet they could still celebrate their belief in God. They remind me that however challenging our lives are we too can still celebrate the joy and hope of the resurrection in the midst of it.

How is the risen Christ calling you to celebrate his presence in your life this Eastertide?

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With open hearts.

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OPEN HEARTED

Today’s Eastertide word is OPEN HEARTED. The Acts of the Apostles, introduces Lydia, a devout business woman from Thyatira. She is in the purple dye trade, which was very much at the luxury end of the clothing market of the day.

She’s a skilled, successful woman, capable of running her business and household. This gives us an interesting and valuable insight into the lives of women at the time which deepens our understanding of the people who made up the early Church.

But, fascinating as that is, it’s not the most interesting, important or exciting thing about Lydia. Luke tells us:

“The Lord opened her heart…”

The interesting thing about Lydia is that she opened her heart so that the Lord spoke directly to her and changed her life forever. Building on the devout faith she already had Christ opens her heart to a new and deeper reality, a faith based on the good news of resurrection.

We don’t know all the details of how that change played out through the rest of her life. We only see its beginnings in the fact that she and her household were baptised and in her compelling Paul and Barnabas to come and stay with her.

She reminds me that, if we allow him to the risen Christ can open our hearts to the new life his resurrection offers. He can change our lives just as much as he changed Lydia’s.

Where are you being called to open your heart to the risen Christ this Eastertide?

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With Courtesy and Respect

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COURTESY

Today’s Eastertide word is COURTESY. I don’t often connect it with either Christian faith or Eastertide.

Yet today’s second reading, from the first letter of St Peter made me that. St Peter writes that the believers should be ready to explain their beliefs to those who disagree with them courtesy and respect:

“Reverence the Lord Christ in your hearts, and always have your answer ready for people who ask you the reason for the hope that you all have. But give it with courtesy and respect and with a clear conscience…”

St Peter’s main concern in writing this is that it will help them to prove their opponents wrong. However, there is a deeper and more important reason for courtesy to be a hallmark of our dialogue and conversation.

We are all made in the image of God. This is not only true of people like us, who agree with us. It’s true of everyone regardless of whether they have the same beliefs, cultures, nationalities, appearances or lifestyle as us. Whoever we encounter we are called to treat them with courtesy and respect, however strongly we might disagree with them.

In a world that’s quick to judge and devalue others St Peter’s words have an especially important message. They take me back to Jesus’s words that we should “love our enemies”. We are not called to agree with everyone, or to water down our beliefs.

We are simply called to treat everybody with courtesy and respect regardless of belief because they too are made in the image of God. If we were able to do this the world would look very different even in these challenging times

Where are you being called to be courteous and respectful this Eastertide?